The importance of regular medical check-ups for babies and children - and the thoroughness of those check-ups - is highlighted in the story of little Gina St. Charles and her pediatrician.

When Gina's parents, Brian and Angie St. Charles, brought 2-month-old Gina to see Dr. Stacey O'Connor last March, O'Connor thought she felt something abnormal in the baby's belly, but the X-ray came back normal.

"When I saw Gina at four months, I knew it wasn't normal, and I sent her to the University of Michigan Hospital where they found a malignant tumor," says O'Connor, of IHA Livingston Pediatrics in Genoa Township.

Gina was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, which affects about 650 children a year in the United States. Gina's tumor was wrapped around her aorta, and if it hadn't been detected and treated quickly, she could have died of cardiac arrest or the cancer could have spread.

"At an exam you look for anything out of the ordinary, which is why it is so important to get these exams," says O'Connor. "It's important to catch problems early."

COURTESY, ROBERT RAMEYYear-old Gina St. Charles is pictured with her pediatrician, Dr. Stacey O'Connor of IHA Livingston Pediatrics in Genoa Township. O'Connor discovered a cancerous tumor wrapped around Gina's aorta when she was 4 months old and got her quick treatment.

Gina has since had eight rounds of chemotherapy. In December, surgery was performed at Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York City, which specializes in neuroblastomas, to remove the shrunken tumor.

On Jan. 17, Gina celebrated her first birthday, and a few days later, O'Connor had the chance to see her again.

"She looked beautiful," says O'Connor. "Her chances are very good of not having any complications."

Gina and her family will travel to Sloan Kettering every three months for the next two years for follow-up appointments.

"Dr. O'Connor is the best pediatrician one could ever ask for," Angie St. Charles says in her nomination. "Words cannot express how much we appreciate what she has done for Gina. We are truly blessed to have her as our children's doctor."

O'Connor says her experience with Gina makes her feel good about her job. She's being honored by the Red Cross (www.liv-redcross.org) as a "medical hero."

"Sometimes you feel like you're not getting a lot accomplished, but when you can change a baby's life, it's a great feeling," says O'Connor. "It's why you go into medicine."